Miller debuts with Tigers on two-year anniversary of Tommy John surgery

Detroit Tigers relief pitcher Justin Miller throws during a spring training baseball game against the New York Mets. Miller made his big-league debut with the Tigers on Friday.
CARLOS OSORIO — The Associated Press

DETROIT >> On April 18, 2012, Justin Miller knew he had a long and torturous road ahead of him.

Exactly two years later, he arrived at his destination.

The 26-year-old reliever made his big-league debut Friday night at Comerica Park.

“Anytime’s a good time. Getting called up is great. It’s also kind of a weird coincidence, too. I’m thinking, pretty for sure, that this time two years ago, I was going under the knife for Tommy John surgery,” Miller recalled before Friday’s game.

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“That day I was thinking it’s going to be a long journey, a long process that I’ve gotta go step-by-step, and just trust in whoever I’m working with.”

Miller chose to stay with the Rangers organization after his surgery, because he trusted the medical staff there. After making his return to the field last season, he posted a 9.82 ERA at Triple-A Round Rock in the Rangers system, then was signed to a big-league deal by the Tigers in the offseason.

He was an early cut from spring training with the Tigers, but did not give up a run in four appearances at Toledo to start the season.

“Just going after guys, attacking the zone. Me and Nip were working on a couple of things, just trying to straighten my alignment. Being able to have a direct line to the plate has been working really well for me,” said Miller, who tweaked some things with Mud Hens pitching coach Al Nipper. “I felt like last year, my stuff was back, but command, I didn’t really have a feel for coming back, pitching again, my mechanics — I felt like that was a learning process. Going through spring training with these guys, going to Toledo, I felt like I was getting more and more of a feel, and I feel like I’m back to where I should be.”

The success story didn’t preclude Nipper and Toledo manager Larry Parrish from having a little fun with Miller, telling him the news Thursday night.

“They kind of threw it over my head at first. I didn’t really — the punchline they gave me didn’t really set in. ... They call me in, and they say, ‘Hey, we’re just going to have to forget the closing role. It’s not really going too well. What do you think, LP?’ LP’s like, ‘Yeah, we’re going to have to forget the role, you’re going to be pitching in the middle of the game in Detroit.’ I’m like, ‘OK,’ thinking of in the future,” Miller recalled.

“He’s like ‘You’re getting called up!’ And I was like ‘What?’ and freaked out. He wasn’t very direct. He was trying to throw it around.”

Miller told his girlfriend, who was waiting in the hallway, then called his father, who made the trip from California, along with his grandparents.

They got to see Miller get in the game, too, pitching two scoreless innings in a blowout loss for the Tigers. He knew early he was probably going to get a chance to pitch, with the Angels rocking starter Drew Smyly.

“I think after the first inning, I probably downed a Red Bull already. The jitters were going, and just trying to keep the butterflies at bay. I knew eventually I was going to get a call to go into the game, and I was just trying to — once it got toward the fifth inning — I just tried to calm my nerves and relax,” Miller said.

“Once I got call, just going out there and going back to the 60 feet, six inches.”

Miller came in after fellow reliever Luke Putkonen had just given up a homer to make it 11-1 in the sixth, and retired three straight. Miller gave up a two-out single in his second inning of work, but no more.

“He’s thrown well, I know that. We’re hoping he continues to do the same at this level,” manager Brad Ausmus said before the game, adding after: “He gave us a couple of needed innings. We were a little thin down there in the bullpen. He almost went out there for a third, but we thought better of it.”

About the Author

Detroit Tigers beat writer for The Oakland Press in Pontiac, Michigan. Mowery has spent 19 years covering sports, from preps to pros. He’s been honored with more than 25 awards for writing. Reach the author at matt.mowery@oakpress.com
or follow Matthew B. on Twitter: @MatthewBMowery.